One of the hardest lessons in leadership is realising that silence can be costly. Many leaders think they are protecting harmony by avoiding confrontation — but in reality, they quietly erode trust, especially among their top performers.
I once heard a leader say: “We lose great people by tolerating our worst”. That line stayed with me because it captures a painful truth. High performers don’t leave because they are overworked; they leave because they feel undervalued and because mediocrity around them goes unchallenged.
When someone consistently shows up, delivers and cares deeply about standards, they notice when others do not. They notice missed deadlines without consequence and when accountability depends on who you are, not what you do. Over time, they start to question why they should continue giving their best in an environment that rewards the bare minimum. That’s when quiet disengagement begins — the slow emotional exit that comes long before the resignation letter.
As leaders, it’s easy to rationalise tolerance. We tell ourselves that confronting under-performance might hurt morale, that someone is trying their best, or that it’s not the right time to address it. But every time we lower the bar, we send a message — not to the person we are protecting, but to those who still care.
True leadership is not about keeping peace; it’s about keeping purpose. Accountability is not cruelty; it’s clarity. When expectations are clear and consequences are fair, trust grows and standards gain meaning.
Oman’s workplaces are full of passionate professionals who genuinely want to do good work. They thrive in cultures that reward integrity, consistency and effort. The challenge isn’t finding great people — it’s keeping them. And keeping them requires courage: the courage to hold others accountable, to have difficult conversations and to stop protecting comfort at the expense of excellence.
The next time you’re tempted to overlook poor performance, remember: you are not avoiding conflict; you are trading it for a bigger one later — the loss of those who once believed their effort mattered.
Never again should we lose our best because we tolerated our worst.
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